Anxiety increases heart death risk

Feeling depressed or anxious dramatically increases the chances of heart patients dying, according to new research reported here Wednesday. Death rates among those with heart disease who also suffer from anxiety and depression are tripled, one study found. A separate team showed that moderate or severe depression increased the risk of death among patients with heart failure four-fold. Almost 1,000 patients with an average age of 62 took part in the heart disease study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association and highlighted by the British press. All answered questions about their feelings immediately before and after an invasive hospital procedure. Doctors used measurement scales based on common symptoms to decide whether participants were depressed or anxious. Among the 133 patients who died during the next three years, 55 suffered from either one or both of the conditions. Anxiety and depression were found to influence the risk of death in different ways. High blood pressure was strongly linked to anxiety, which on its own doubled the risk of dying from any cause. Depression was more associated with behavioral risk factors, such as smoking and not taking medication. Previous studies have already found that depression reduces the survival of heart disease patients and triples the risk of heart attacks. However, this may have been partly because depressed patients are likely to be anxious as well, experts believe.